


Pint Sized

by Wintermoth



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrien is adorable and Marinette was NOT PREPARED, Children, Crushes, F/M, Gen, I HOPE YOU'RE HERE FOR OUR PRECIOUS KIDS TO BE ADORABLE PRECIOUS SMOLS BECAUSE YOU SHOULD BE, I'm talking That-One-Smile-Marinette-Does-in-Animan-Cute like 24/7 ARE YOU FUCKERS PREPARED???, IT'S A SMOL FIC, Identity Reveal, NO REALLY GUYS THIS FIC IS GONNA BE REALLY FUCKING CUTE, PRETTY SURE THIS DOESN'T COUNT AS AN AU SO WOOHOO, Pint Sized ML, THERE WILL BE NO ANGST I PROMISE, THIS IS A CUTE FIC. I'M BEHAVING., and if there is it'll only be a lil smidge, childish impulses, smols
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-11-07
Updated: 2017-01-21
Packaged: 2018-08-29 13:13:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 19,968
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8491084
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wintermoth/pseuds/Wintermoth
Summary: "Honey? Someone shrunk the kids."In which the dorks become even younger dorks.





	1. A Small Problem

**Author's Note:**

> WELCOME TO-- ... well I was gonna say "Welcome to Hell!" but this is the literal opposite of hell. This is going to be fluff and cute non-stop. I'm talking the kind of fluff that'll make this unreadable on public transportation because you're probably gonna squee and blush harder than Adrien.
> 
> There will be translations at the bottom for the bits of French you'll see :) 
> 
> Banner/Cover designed by [edendaphne](http://edendaphne.tumblr.com) \- and special thanks as well for helping me get this story off the ground the night I came yelling to you about it XD  
> Also thanks to KryallaOrchid for the usual stuff :P, Qookyquiche for her [art](http://qookyquiche.tumblr.com/post/151692870675/) and Portentous-Offerings for the [doodles](http://portentous-offerings.tumblr.com/post/152147754038/) as well. 
> 
> ENJOY, FOLKS.
> 
>  

This was definitely not how Ladybug expected her day to go.

It was supposed to be just another normal day of summer break. No responsibilities beyond the ones her parents gave her, no homework, no babysitting, and no akuma. Just a trip to a butterfly garden so Tikki would have a chance to fly around for a while in a comfortable environment where she wouldn't be in danger if she was glimpsed. It was going to be a nice, relaxing day free of stress.

Would've been nice if she and Hawkmoth could've been on the same page.

Instead of butterflies and flowers, they got an akuma tearing through the place. Instead of a picnic, they got screaming and fighting.

It was another kid. In the years she'd been a hero, Ladybug had been forced to face off against more than one young child turned villain by Hawkmoth. The reasons behind a child's akumatization were usually far simpler than adults. Justified or not, it usually boiled down to a temper tantrum. For some reason, Hawkmoth had decided the way this child could have what she wanted was to give her the power to turn everyone she touched into a child.

Even if she hadn't seen the transformation before her very eyes, the mass of children stumbling along the sidewalks and streets in clothes far too big for their bodies would've given it away. None of them looked older than _maybe_ ten. She couldn't tell if the transformation was mental or just physical, either. Some of the newly transformed children seemed to be behaving responsibly and were getting themselves out of harm's way, helping each other, or talking frantically into their cell phones, but more than one of them had elected to simply sit down and start crying, although those ones seemed more on the younger side.

Gaminette was about four and a half feet tall with fair skin and bright blue hair in twin braids that hung from the sides of her head. She wore a pair of oversized overalls over a pastel pink t-shirt and magenta sneakers. She had no weapon, transformed people with her bare hands, and the only thing that looked remotely like a possible corrupted item was the dark bracelet on her wrist.

She should have been an easy win. She just wanted to play. Chat Noir had courteously proposed a game of _jouer à chat_ to entertain her while Ladybug cooked up a plan to get the bracelet from her wrist. With his superior speed and agility, Chat Noir should've been able to keep well out of Gaminette's reach.

Key word: should've.

They had not expected Gaminette to run up walls like a spider and backflip through the air like an Olympic gymnast in her pursuit of the superhero.

"TAG! YOU'RE IT!"

A startled yelp and a flash of light and Chat Noir the hero was gone. In his place was a scrawny boy about four-foot-two who staggered about like a cat on his hind legs while he tried to get his bearings. When he was sure-footed once more, he raised his arms for inspection, then he spun around to face the akuma who he was now almost eye-to-eye with.

"No fair!" the boy howled. "You cheated!"

Gaminette blinked in surprise and then scowled. "Nuh- _UH_! You were jumping and flying around all over the place so why is it cheating when I did it, too? Huh? Huh? HUH?!"

"B-BECAUSE!" he sputtered.

"BECAUSE WHY?!"

"I'M CHAT NOIR!"

"THAT'S A STUPID REASON."

The two bickered back and forth like the obnoxious children they were, gesturing wildly with their arms, and Ladybug could only gawk from the sidelines. She'd seen at least six people turned into children with her own eyes but for some reason, Chat Noir getting turned into a child was just a bit too much for her to process immediately.

He looked almost the same; same hairstyle, same outfit, and unlike her other victims, his clothes had shrunk with him. Did that mean his kwami was affected as well or just reacting to the situation?

It occurred to her about ten seconds into the argument that this was probably going to be her best chance at taking the akuma down. Between her brattiness and his stubbornness, those two be go at it for a while. Ladybug pulled her yo-yo from her hip and began creeping towards them. She was well aware that many of the people on the sidelines were Gaminette's victims and she silently hoped they were mature enough to not yell out in excitement. It had happened before, even from adults, and if Chat's outburst was any indication then maturity levels had dropped with their ages.

"—and it's not _my_ fault that Hawkmoth didn't warn you about that!" Chat Noir declared, leaning around Gaminette. "Right, my lady?"

Ladybug's eyes flipped wide. _Crap_!

Gaminette whirled around, surprised to see Ladybug only a few feet away. "Hey!" she cried and lunged.

Ladybug scrambled to get away but before she could even make it more than a few feet, Gaminette had tagged her. The world melted away and a curious tingle rolled through her body like a wave. She stumbled, shaking her head from the weird sensation and shift in gravity. Opening her eyes, Ladybug blinked a few times to clear her vision, already knowing what she was going to see.

God, she hadn't been this close to the ground in years. Had these buildings always been so tall? At least her costume had shrunk with her like Chat's had.

And speaking of Chat…

"HEY! You keep your hands off of her you or—or— just keep 'em off!" he yelled and then his Miraculous let out a beep. "What?!" Chat yelped. "I haven't even used Cataclysm! What the heck did you do to me?!"

Ladybug shook her head and spun around. Right. She'd officially had enough for one day. Either Gaminette was too focused on Chat's yelling or she no longer considered Ladybug a threat but she had her back to her. With a growl, Ladybug drew her arm back and flung her yo-yo at Gaminette. It wrapped around her, pinning her arms to her sides. Gaminette squealed, twisting and wriggling in a futile attempt to free herself.

"Now, Chaton!" Ladybug ordered and he pounced.

The strength of the miraculous remained with him despite his transformation and, so used having a larger and heavier body, he forgot to compensate for his lesser mass. He seemed to realize this as he hurtled through the air and Ladybug glimpsed a flash of panic on his face just before he crashed into Gaminette, knocking her back into Ladybug, and the three of them toppled to the ground.

Ladybug grunted as she had the wind knocked out of her. "Chat!" she rasped in frustration.

" _Sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry!"_ Chat wailed as he rolled off of the top of the pile.

Gaminette lashed out with her foot and he only just managed to dodge the blow. "YOU WILL BE IN A SECOND!"

"You hush!" Chat snatched the bracelet off her wrist, snapping the string, and the beads clattered to the street. Ladybug's eyes widened as the butterfly fluttered out of the object and took to the sky. From the look on his face, Chat clearly had not expected that to happen.

"CHAT! GET IT!" she screamed, frantically trying to push Gaminette off her.

Chat sprang into the air after it, arms outstretched, but the akuma was fast and he missed it by mere inches. He yelped as he fell, hands scrabbling futilely at the air. He was off the moment he landed, tearing up the street after the akuma, and he jumped again.

Ladybug was almost free when Gaminette suddenly went still. Darkness bubbled around her then dissipated, leaving behind an ordinary little girl who was suddenly experiencing post-akuma disorientation for the first time. That was bad enough on its own and the yo-yo binding her arms did absolutely nothing to help the situation. It took less than five seconds for the poor kid to devolve into a full blown panic. Then, just to make things worse, Ladybug's Miraculous let out its first beep.

She was able to get free but as much as she wanted to go after the akuma, Ladybug had to deal with the poor, terrified victim. Carefully but quickly, she removed her yo-yo from around her arms, speaking soothingly the whole time. The poor girl was only eight or nine at most, with big, dark eyes that were full of tears, and missing her two front teeth. It took nearly a minute for Ladybug to calm her down, hugging her and reassuring her that everything was okay and she was safe.

Ladybug's Miraculous had just let out its second beep when Chat Noir returned emptyhanded.

"I'm sorry," he apologized and the look of utter sorrow on his young face was almost enough to absolve him in Ladybug's eyes. Almost. "I tried so hard but everything's weird and it was so fast and I couldn't _get it_ and then it went over the river." He gestured helplessly.

She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. They both knew what this meant. Within half an hour, dozens of Gaminette's would appear, dormant, throughout the city, and the people inside would remain trapped until the child huddled against Ladybug was inevitably re-akumatized. They were. So. Screwed.

"Julie!" a woman yelled, startling both heroes. Ladybug looked around and spotted a woman running up the sidewalk towards them.

"Mama _!_ " the little girl cried, pushing herself to her feet. She ran away from the heroes towards her mother.

Ladybug saw Chat Noir hold out his hand in her peripheral vision and she sighed, accepting it. He pulled her to her feet and cocked his head to the side, looking her up and down. "We're stuck like this," he announced. "And you're down to four spots." His Miraculous beeped again. "And I'm at three. Do you live very far from here?"

Ladybug looked around at the unfamiliar street, only realizing for the first time that she had no idea where she was. She knew the Arc de Triomphe was within a few kilometers but she couldn't quite remember in which direction or how far. Even if she managed to get there in time, she lived nearly two and a half arrondissements away from it. Normally she would have easily been able to make her way home from there but for some reason, the prospect of traversing the kilometers between here and home suddenly seemed terrifying.

The buildings suddenly seemed larger than ever around her. All the faces of the people emerging from the buildings around them were unfamiliar. She felt small, helpless, and wanted her mother. Tears welled in her eyes and she looked back at Chat Noir, nodding vigorously.

It was the transformation, it had to be. The de-aging must have affected their minds as well. She was Ladybug, she should not be feeling like this! And Chat may be a handful but he normally wasn't as irresponsible or childish as he'd been since Gaminette had touched him.

"Hey, hey, hey, don't cry! I didn't mean to make you cry, my lady!" Chat threw his arms around her. "Please stop, I'm sorry. I'll get you home, I promise. Okay?"

Ladybug nodded, wiping her eyes again, and took a step back to give her space. Then he tensed, ears lowering warily, and he looked around. A crowd was beginning to form around them and with the people came cameras and questions. What was going on? Why hadn't she undone Gaminette's transformations?

The two of them made their escape quickly to the safety of the rooftops. They managed to make it half a block away before his Miraculous beeped again and she decided it was time to stop. They located a roof with stair access and landed on it just as her Miraculous let out its third beep.

"I'm scared," Ladybug whimpered. Two minutes left.

Chat Noir shook his head. "Don't be, okay? We'll get home."

"That's not why I'm scared. What are my parents going to say? How am I going to explain why I was so far from home?" she fretted.

"We'll figure it out," he promised. "A-and I'm sorry I gave away your position earlier. I don't know _why_ I did that I just really, _really_ wanted to prove her wrong." He scowled, frustrated. "This is messing with my head."

Ladybug laughed weakly. "Mine, too. I shouldn't be so scared like this."

"We're gonna get that akuma," he reassured. Then his eyes widened and he smacked his forehead. "Oh, _crap!_ We forgot to warn her mom!"

She wrinkled her nose, fighting the urge to stamp her foot in agitation.

Chat's miraculous let out its final beep and Ladybug squeezed her eyes shut. There was a fizzing noise, almost like electricity crackling, and green light flared behind her eyelids. Her hands flew up to cover her eyes automatically.

"Cheeeeeseee," a high voice whined a moment later.

"How are you hungry? How are you even out of power!? I didn't use Cataclysm!" Chat protested. "What's up with that?"

"Oh, yeah, you're welcome _._ "

"What?"

"Kid do you even realize how much energy it took me to change your costume when you shrank?" the kwami griped. "And notice how that ring isn't falling off your finger? Yeah, that's right. I actually altered your suit while you were transformed. _You're welcome._ Now feed me."

"Right. Let me just pull out the secret stash of cheese I keep in my pocket."

"You keep a stash of cheese in your pocket?!"

Ladybug's Miraculous let out their final beep. Moments later, she felt the transformation release and she had to lower her hands and open her eyes to catch Tikki as the kwami came sailing out of her earrings. Her hands were normally large enough that Tikki could sit comfortably in a single one but now Tikki's tiny body filled the space of both, which only further emphasized how much she'd shrunk.

She could feel her clothes sitting on her body awkwardly. The white bag over her shoulder containing their picnic supplies felt cumbersome and heavy. Her short sleeves now reached her elbows and when she shifted, one of the sleeves slipped off her shoulder, along with her bra strap. Her shorts went past her knees but fortunately for her, the elastic in the waistband of her shorts kept them from sliding off her non-existent hips. Out of curiosity, she looked down at her feet and was unsurprised to see them completely dwarfed by her sandals.

Marinette sighed.

"Are you alright?" Tikki asked tiredly.

She nodded, taking a deep breath, and raised her head so she could see Chat Noir. His green eyes were human, his hair was shorter and much nicer than she was used to, and he had a smattering of very light freckles across his nose and cheeks but other than that he looked exactly the same. The look of childish wonder on his face was adorable. His eyes roamed, taking in every single detail, from her pigtails, to her eyes, button nose, and her awkwardly small feet. She bit her lip, waiting for him to say something. A few moments passed in silence and she cleared her throat.

"Hi," she said timidly. "Um, I'm—"

"Really pretty!"

Her eyes flipped wide and so did his and she squeaked in surprise and he dropped his kwami as his hands flew up to cover his mouth. Both their faces flushed with embarrassment.

"U-um, thank you," Marinette murmured.

Chat looked like he wanted to melt into the ground. Marinette couldn't help but giggle, covering her own mouth with one of her hands. He perked up and at the noise and his eyes searched her face intently. He slowly lowered his hands, revealing his mouth which was round in surprise.

"Marinette?"

Marinette's laughter died in her throat and her eyes flipped wide. _Crap._

"Oh my god, you're Marinette!" he pointed at her and she only had a moment to feel panic before the biggest grin appeared on his face and he laughed gleefully. "No way! This is incredible! I know you! I mean, I actually _know you_ , Ladybug!"

"Wait, you do? How?"

"Yeah! It's me! C'mon, Marinette, you can't tell me you don't recognize me."

Her brow furrowed as she looked him up and down again. His clothes were too big to fit and they hung limply off his small body, but Marinette knew designer when she saw it. That ring on his hand, she'd seen it before, dozens of times. That hairstyle…and those eyes…

"Adrien?!"

Adrien Agreste grinned at her. "Hiya, princess!"

Marinette felt her face go beet red. Oh my God it was Adrien. Adrien was Chat and Chat was Adrien her goofy dork of a partner was the kind and modest boy she had crush on. He wasn't handsome, either, oh no, he was absolutely _adorable_ with those round cheeks and that big toothy grin of his and he was looking at her like she'd just told him Christmas had come early. He was _Chat_ and he was _Adrien_ and she was absolutely entirely _unprepared_ for this and _oh my god her shirt was falling off!_

She yelped again and yanked her sleeve back onto her shoulder, ducking her head in embarrassment.

This was not how today was supposed to go!

While she was freaking out, Tikki flew out of her hands and waved at Adrien. "Hi, Adrien."

"Hi," Adrien greeted, taken aback by the familiarity in her tone.

The black kwami on the ground ceased his feeble whining and perked up at the sight of her. "Tikki!"

Tikki's tail wiggled and she trilled at him excitedly. He shot into the air, colliding with her, and the two of them tumbled away, all exhaustion forgotten.

Both Marinette and Adrien watched them for a few moments before looking back to each other. His smile was timid this time, hopeful, and she pursed her lips before finally smiling back.

"This is okay, right?" Adrien asked.

Marinette nodded. "Yeah. It's okay." He still seemed a bit unsure so she went on. "More than okay. It's great."

His answering grin outshined the sun. "Great! So, uh, that offer to get you home is still there… and it's not even trouble since we live near each other. If you want."

Marinette glanced at the two kwami chasing each other through the air. She had a cookie in her bag but it would take more than that for Tikki to have enough energy for a transformation. Even if she could, she couldn't leave Adrien all alone out here! Her eyes flicked back to him. He looked so happy and hopeful—she'd never seen him like this before, not as himself. Not even as Chat. He'd found out her identity and he was _happy_! The circumstances may not have been ideal but she couldn't imagine this going any better than it had.

It wasn't like they had a way of finding the butterfly before it re-possessed Julie, either. It was bad but they kind of needed that to happen. For now, there was nothing they could do except go home and face the music.

"Okay," she agreed.

Adrien plunged his hand into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone. "I'm going to call my bodyguard. He'll come and pick us up."

"But won't you get in trouble?" she fretted. She knew from past conversations that Adrien wasn't supposed to walk around in public without his bodyguard.

He grimaced as he scrolled through his contacts. "Yeah but there's not exactly a way to avoid it." He gestured to himself with his free hand and held the phone up to his ear with his other.

After the initial process of convincing his bodyguard that he was, in fact, Adrien, he spoke quickly with the man about getting a ride out of here. Marinette gleaned from his half of the conversation that this was most definitely not the first time he'd had to place such a call. He wheedled him into not informing Nathalie or his father just yet and gave him their approximate location then hung up.

"It'll be about forty-five minutes," he informed her apologetically.

"That's fine. It's the safest and smartest thing to do in the situation. Actually, getting off this roof would be the safest and smartest thing right now."

"Yep. Plagg," Adrien called and the tiny cat turned towards him. "Come on, we're heading down!"

The two kwami came zooming over. Tikki dove for Marinette's bag and Plagg, instead of heading into Adrien's pocket or something, followed suit. Tikki held the flap open for him and he flew inside. Tikki waved at them once then dropped the flap. Marinette and Adrien looked at each other in surprise.

"You don't mind?" he asked.

She shrugged. "There's room. So long as he remembers to go home with you and not me."

They took the stairwell down from the roof and ended up in the lobby of a small hotel. They received an odd look from the concierge but were out of the lobby before he could question them.

There were a few shops in the area, most of them tailored towards locals rather than tourists since the bulk of them were drawn to those of the _Champs Élysées_ nearby. One was a candy shop and Marinette wasn't sure if it was the childish impulses or her own sweet tooth that drew her in. Adrien followed her inside eagerly. There was some initial concern from the clerk but they explained that they were both nearly adults but had been victims of the akuma attack and weren't just random, improperly dressed children. The clerk accepted this explanation without any noticeable doubt and left them be. They both spent five minutes simply browsing the assortment of treats offered. She decided to get a small bag of chocolate pieces and encouraged him to pick something for himself, her treat.

"I—I shouldn't, I'm already going to get in trouble for this, I don't want to make it worse but eating something I shouldn't…"

"That's dumb," she declared, "a little bit of candy isn't gonna kill you or make you fat, which I'm guessing are the reasons you're not allowed to eat candy, right?"

Adrien nodded, though taken aback by her forwardness. Honestly, she was, too. Sixteen year-old Marinette was still in there and functioning but it seemed younger Marinette was at the helm. Oh well. In for a penny…

"Besides, if you eat it quickly, no one ever has to know," she pointed out with a sly wink.

Adrien blinked in surprise.

Five minutes later, they both walked out with chocolate bars.

They sat on the edge of the sidewalk not far from the shop and ate their chocolate. Adrien was far too happy about being able to eat a chocolate bar and Marinette decided that she was going to single-handedly ruin his diet with as many pastries and cookies as her parents would let her. She thought of the time he'd come to her room to play Mecha Strike III for tournament practice and how she'd dismissed her parents and their offerings of baked goods. Had he been excited for them? She couldn't remember. Either way, she felt a little bad now.

After they'd finished their chocolate, with nothing else to do, they tried to go for a walk but quickly became frustrated with their clothes. Marinette took her hair ties out and used them to tie off the excess fabric in the waistlines of their shorts. They'd also decided to simply take their shoes off, their feet were far too small and they kept tripping. It was then that they made a very important discovery: Marinette was approximately two inches taller than Adrien.

Marinette nearly screeched in delight. She was taller than him! After all the times Chat Noir had poked fun at her for being so much shorter than him now, finally, she had the upper hand! Adrien was not at all pleased by this discovery and alternated between jumping and standing on his tip toes to try and regain his lost height and simply pouting at her. Marinette skipped around him, gloating and teasing playfully. A few people gave them odd looks as they passed by but neither child cared.

It was strange. Not even an hour ago the thought of acting like this around Adrien would have been unfathomable. Maybe it was the influence of her transformation making her bolder or maybe it was because he was acting so much like Chat Noir. Or it could have something to do with the fact that her teenage hormones were nowhere to be found and he wasn't hot anymore. Whatever the cause, it was a bit of a relief. She liked being able to interact with him like a human being for once.

From within her bag, Plagg guffawed rather loudly at Adrien's continued protests about their height differences, though thankfully no one was around to hear him. Both kwami even risked being seen just to see this discovery for themselves.

Adrien's bodyguard, whom he had affectionately dubbed 'the Gorilla', arrived approximately twenty minutes later. Adrien spotted the sleek silver car cruising up the street before she did and hurried away from the building they'd been leaning against to flag him down from the curb. Marinette hung back unsurely. She didn't know anything about this man other than that he kept Adrien 'safe' (although she questioned his efficiency since Chat Noir Adrien managed to ditch him all the time). Would he be upset? Would he blame her for their situation? She would gladly take the bullet for Adrien this time though she had a feeling he wouldn't let her.

Wait, had Adrien even mentioned she was with him when he was on the phone? She couldn't remember.

The car pulled up along the curb, slotting in between two parked cars with ease. The driver door opened a moment later and out stepped the massive form of his bodyguard.

The Gorilla loomed over Adrien and frowned sternly down at him. Adrien hunched his shoulders and smiled sheepishly. Marinette pushed off the building and approached them slowly with her shoes held behind her back. The Gorilla's attention snapped to her and he stared for a moment before his eyes flicked between them curiously. Marinette smiled brightly, rocking forward onto the balls of her feet, and slipping her arm into the strap of one of her sandals so her hand was free to wave at him.

"Um…" Adrien cleared his throat. "This is my friend Marinette. She lives really close. Can we take her home, please?"

The stern expression melted from the Gorilla's face so quickly that Marinette knew he had never really been angry to begin with and smiled knowingly at Adrien. Without a word, he opened the back door for them. Adrien grinned at Marinette over his shoulder and they scampered towards the car. He motioned for her to climb in first then followed after.

Marinette was not too familiar with travelling in a car. Like many Parisians, she had relied on the metro and bus systems to get around for most of her life. Her father owned a van for delivery but she seldom went with him on those deliveries, and the few times she'd actually been in a car, they had been older models owned by family members who lived outside the city. Nothing like a luxury car.

She was surprised at how _soft_ the seats were. Nothing against the public transportation system but those seats weren't exactly the most comfortable. She spent a few moments bouncing up and down on her butt before she wriggled her back against the seat and appreciated just how comfortable it felt. Adrien watched her with an amused grin on his face and she stuck her tongue out at him.

"Shut up, this is new to me."

"I didn't say anything!" he replied, grinning.

"Yeah, well, you're thinking it," she grumbled, looking down at the arm rest on the door. _Ooh, what does this button do?_ she thought and jumped in surprise when the window rolled down.

Adrien laughed.

The Gorilla climbed back inside the vehicle and shut the door. Adrien put his seat belt on and Marinette stared dumbly at him for a moment before remembering she had to do the same. She fumbled with getting the metal doohickey into the whatchamajig attached to the seat but stubbornly ignored Adrien's offer of help. She smirked proudly when she heard the 'click' of the latch inside and leaned back against the seat once more.

Adrien showed her the screens in the back of the seats, which had access to different apps like the news, video calls, games, and even youtube. He showed her the main ones he used, as well as the list of games that were on there and Marinette just stared, completely dumbfounded. Was there a tablet in the seat? How was this even possible? Surely it couldn't be comfortable, how was the Gorilla managing to sit like he was?

"—and this is a cool radio app—" Adrien pointed at one of the icons on the screen that she didn't recognize.

"What's wrong with your car radio?" she demanded.

"Nothing. This is more of a personal radio thing. Here, look, I'll show you."

She let him explain how the app worked because he genuinely seemed eager to show her this little piece of his life and pointedly ignored the occasional glances the Gorilla gave them in the rearview mirror. Adrien picked a station at random, which turned out to be full off popular American music, and cranked up the volume just loud enough that it would drown out their words.

"See? He won't be able to hear us if we're quiet," he muttered to her, leaning across the space between them.

Marinette glanced up front. The Gorilla's eyes were on the road and hers narrowed. "You did that on purpose."

Adrien grinned, unabashed. "So, what do you think?" he asked at normal volume. "Completely over the top, right?"

"Completely," she deadpanned though she was glad he thought so, too. Chloe probably didn't.

Marinette frowned and looked away. What was _Chloe_ going to say when she found out about this? They'd already agreed to say that they'd been out together to protect their identies but since neither of them had been up front about it to the authority figures in their life, it stood to reason that they'd wanted it to be kept secret. Teenagers didn't tend to keep platonic outings secret. Adrien's condition probably wouldn't be kept under wraps for long and it was only a matter of time before Chloe found out and swooped in to fawn over her precious little _Adrikins_.

"This is definitely not how I thought today was going to go," Marinette lamented, watching the city pass by through the windows.

"Me either," he agreed and then lowered his voice, "but I don't mind. I got to meet you. You know, for real."

Marinette glanced at him, noticed the dopey smile on his face, and looked away quickly. Damn cat, why was he being so—so… _cute_? She was still reeling from the revelation that Chat was Adrien but he seemed to not be affected at all. He'd just accepted it and carried right on like normal. Well, almost normal. It was probably a good thing that he hadn't resumed flirting yet. (She'd never noticed Adrien flirt, though, so was it only something he did as Chat? Would he flirt with her later when they were both back in costume or was flirting not something younger Chat was even capable of? Would he ever flirt with her again now that he knew his Lady was just his classmate?)

She glanced at the Gorilla then asked quietly, "Was learning my identity really worth getting turned into a little kid and probably getting grounded?"

Adrien nodded without hesitation. "Yep! You're worth way more than that, my lady."

Feeling the heat rising in her cheeks, Marinette covered them with her hands before he could see the blush his words had prompted. She looked at him and his stupid grin for a moment longer before turning away in embarrassment. Just when she thought she was going to be alright around him, he went and said things like that. Dumb cat.

Not that she minded.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lol these darn children are too cute for each other to handle.
> 
> :D Feel free to come talk to me on my tumblr, [wintermoth](http://wintermoth.tumblr.com). I will be using the tag "[Pint Sized ML](http://wintermoth.tumblr.com/tagged/pint%20sized%20ml)" for everything related to this fic and you can, too. Be sure to put it in the first five tags, though, or I won't see it. 
> 
> **TRANSLATIONS**  
>  "jouer à chat" is what the French call "tag". In this case, it is very much a pun. Chat Noir uses it in Le Pharon to taunt the mummies into chasing him. 
> 
> Gaminette - gamin (f. gamine) is a word used to refer to a scrappy and mischievous child or homeless child. The suffix -ette attached to a word is diminutive and generally refers to a smaller version of the word. ( _Si vous êtes français et que j'ai commis une erreur, dites-le moi plait._ )


	2. Childified

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Hi, Mama. I can explain."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So an angry cheeto got elected. I'm mad. Everyone's mad.
> 
> Please take this cute and savor it instead.

The look on Sabine's face when Marinette and Adrien stumbled into the bakery was priceless. It was clear for a moment that her mother didn't recognize her and she gave the two of them and their bare feet a disapproving frown. Then the penny dropped and her jaw hit the floor and she clutched the counter for support.

Marinette waved weakly. "Hi, Mama. I can explain."

"Tom. TOM!" Sabine called. Something clattered in the kitchen and Tom appeared a moment later, alert for whatever had distressed his wife. His eyes fell on the two children and he stared blankly.

Marinette smiled sheepishly. Adrien shuffled his feet, eyes downcast.

"Honey," Tom said after a moment. "Someone shrunk the kids."

Sabine sighed in exasperation but his lighthearted joke worked to defuse some of tension in the air. Having been in Paris since the very first akuma attack, Tom and Sabine were well used to the strange happenings that had occurred in the city since. They didn't even need to ask how this was possible. News of the attack hadn't even reached them yet but they had no reason to doubt their daughter's explanation when she gave it. After all, how else could she have become a child again?

"Are you hurt?" Sabine asked. "And who's this?"

Adrien smiled brightly—probably trying to be charming but managing to be utterly adorable instead. "Adrien Agreste. We've met before. Marinette's my friend."

"We're fine, Mama _._ " Marinette reassured her, drawing her parents back to her before that sudden gleam in their eyes could progress further. "We were just in the wrong place at the wrong time and…got tagged by the akuma."

"I thought you were going to a garden or something?" Tom looked at his wife for confirmation and Sabine nodded.

"I was."

"I asked her if she wanted to hang out so we were going together." Adrien lied smoothly. "But then Gaminette started turning everyone into kids—that's the akuma's name, by the way—and we couldn't get away fast enough." His mouth twisted like he was still upset about that.

"The butterfly thing got away," Marinette added. "We don't know what happened, exactly, but we're not back to normal so I guess Ladybug wasn't able to fix things." She shrugged. "So I think we're gonna be stuck like this until it's over."

Tom and Sabine exchanged worried looks. "I'm going to go check the news," Tom decided, clearly remembering the last time an akuma escaped.

"We didn't see anything on the way over," Adrien told him. "We had the news on."

"On where?" Sabine asked, confused. "How did you get home?"

"Oh, uh, yeah." Adrien cleared his throat. "I should probably go. My bodyguard came and picked us up. He sorta doubles as a chauffeur. I figured it'd be safer for him to drive us."

Sabine looked over their heads at the silver car parked outside. She pursed her lips thoughtfully then walked around the counter. "I'd like to thank him."

"Thank him for me, too, dear," Tom requested as he disappeared through the back door. Sabine held up her hand to show she'd heard him and opened the front door.

It had scarcely shut behind her when Adrien smacked his forehead. "I just remembered! We forgot to go back for Julie! We could've at least _warned her_."

Marinette groaned. He was right. "We really messed up today, huh?"

"No," he corrected glumly, " _I_ messed up."

Well, he wasn't wrong. "I forgot about her, too. It's not all on you."

"An army of Gaminettes is gonna _suck_."

Gaminette had been annoying enough on her own, the same way Stone Heart had been a challenge, and she remembered what it was like to fight a small army of him. Having a couple dozen little Gaminettes running around was gonna be a pain in the butt. Except now they had experience on their side and, assuming it was even possible at all, they had the skill to thin the army's numbers if necessary.

They could handle this. …It was just gonna suck.

"Oh, is Plagg still in there?" Adrien asked, peering at her bag.

Marinette opened it to check. Tikki was nestled between Marinette's wallet and the baggie holding the uneaten sandwich but there was no sign of the black cat kwami. Lowering the flap, she shook her head. "He must've slipped out in the car."

Adrien frowned suspiciously and cast a glance around the room. "You don't have any cheese items on display, do you?"

"I don't think—wait! Papa made cheese croissants this morning!" Marinette spun around pointed at the display case where they should be located. Adrien dashed over to the case, pressing his hands against the glass, and searched inside for his kwami frantically. After a few moments, he sighed in relief.

"Not here, good. He's not above stealing food, though." Adrien scowled. "I gotta say, your kwami seems a lot nicer."

Marinette cocked her head to the side. "Is he mean?"

"No, not really. Sarcastic, self-centered, rude, obsessed with cheese—but not mean."

"Yep!" Tikki piped, her voice muffled by the bag. "That's Plagg!"

"Sounds like the opposite of Tikki," Marinette mused. That made sense. Ladybug and Chat Noir were, after all, two sides of the same coin. Their powers were widely different but they balanced and complimented each other. To think that the kwami were similar in that respect was not much of a stretch.

Outside the bakery, Sabine and Gorilla were having a conversation through the driver's side window. They couldn't see Sabine's expression from the way she stood but the Gorilla was smiling. He nodded and said something to her, waving his hand a little in the universal 'don't worry about it' gesture.

Adrien sighed. "I should probably go. And I doubt I'll be able to sneak out for a patrol tonight, either. My father and the staff are going to be all over me."

"I—" She wanted to stay she understood but did she, really? She knew her parents were going to hover but from what she knew of his home life, their worst sounded like his father's best. "It's okay," she reassured him. "But if Gaminette comes back today…"

A grin appeared on his face and he may as well have been wearing a mask because it was _all_ Chat. He bowed, sweeping his arm out in a dramatic flourish, and winked at her. "Never fear, my lady, this cat won't leave you hanging."

She sighed heavily and shoved his shoulder playfully. "Cut it out before my parents see."

He straightened up but the grin never wavered. "Do you have my phone number?"

Marinette nodded. "Alya gave it to me a while ago." No way was she telling him why.

"Good. Text me if anything goes wrong. Or if anything doesn't go wrong. Or, y'know, if you just want to."

"No cat emojis," she warned him.

He winked. "I'll see you later, _purrincesse_."

* * *

Marinette's parents were taking the whole thing rather well. Under any other circumstances, their daughter being the victim of an akuma attack would've terrified them. They'd barely coped with all the attacks at her school even though she was always well away from them. All things considered, in her opinion, being turned back into a kid wasn't that bad, just a bit unexpected. Tom and Sabine agreed.

Armed with a stack of photo albums, Tom set out on a mission to determine exactly how young she was right now. After five minutes of searching and holding up pictures next to her face, he surmised she was somewhere between eight or nine years old. Marinette thought about how she was at that age compared to how she'd been acting since Gaminette touched her and quickly agreed. She wondered if Adrien had ended up the same age as her since they were the same age normally. What about the others—the adults who'd been touched or the other teenagers? Were they all hovering somewhere in the eight to nine range or were some older? Younger? Julie, the little girl who'd become Gaminette, might have been 8 or 9 herself now that she thought about it.

Marinette dug around in the depths of her closet to find the smallest clothing she could and changed into a shirt she'd outgrown sometime last year and a pair of shorts that probably wouldn't fit by Christmas. They were still a bit big on her but nothing a few rubber bands and safety pins couldn't solve. Sabine eyed her daughter's handiwork doubtfully and asked if she'd rather run out and buy a pair of clothes that would actually fit her.

"No thanks, Mama," Marinette said resolutely as she pinned the waistline of her shorts. "I've got this."

The only thing she couldn't do was shrink her shoes and after half an hour of fiddling with every single pair of shoes she owned, trying to get them to fit her small feet and actually be comfortable, she surrendered. Her mother took her out to a nearby shoe store and Marinette picked out a pair of simple white Velcro sandals.

Not long after they got home, she got a text from Alya telling her to look at the Ladyblog. She sighed to herself as she booted up her computer, having a hunch of what was waiting for her. Sure enough, the homepage of the Ladyblog was packed with submitted photos and footage of the fight and a video post by Alya which she described as her speculations on the events of the battle and the aftermath. But the _pièce de résistance_ was the post containing nothing but footage and shots of the young Ladybug and Chat Noir.

Marinette grimaced. Her suit, which had never been the most creative design, looked like footie pajamas on this younger, smaller body. She repeated the thought aloud to Tikki who hummed thoughtfully but didn't comment. Moving on, she went to Alya's speculative video and pressed play. As usual, she didn't seem to be onto anything that neither Miraculous wielder wanted her to be and now that they knew each other, she and Adrien were going to have to try even harder to make sure things stayed that way.

On-screen, Alya commented on how unusual was that Ladybug had not reversed the damage caused by Gaminette or the transformations of her victims like she always did.

Marinette smacked her forehead. "Oh, duh! Tikki, we should do that!"

"We can't," Tikki said with a shake of her head. "I would've already told you if we could."

"What? Why not?" Marinette asked with a frown and paused the video. She'd performed the restoration before without having already captured the akuma. What was so different this time?

"Because even miracles have limits and the power will only work once per akuma," Tikki explained. "Akumas are made up of negative energy but each one also has its own unique…signature. I can sense and read these signatures but it seems you haven't inherited that power. Or simply haven't come into it yet," she added thoughtfully. "But anyway, this signature is like a scent but made up of energy and it leaves a trail. Your power picks up on the negative signature then seeks out everything within the vicinity that has been affected by it."

"So why won't it work more than once?"

"Because the restoration is practically infallible and once it has eliminated the damage done by one signature, it no longer recognizes that signature as a threat."

"What? That's ridiculous! Not to mention impractical! Why does it do that?"

"Magic isn't alive, Marinette," she explained patiently and flew up to the monitor, tapping the screen. "In a way, it works like a computer. It has the potential to do many things but can only do what it's told. The magic spell you cast each time you restore was crafted long ago and for a different purpose, and you're right, it _is_ a bit impractical in this situation, but it's one of the most powerful things we have in our arsenal and the best suited to counter the destruction."

"Does that mean…there are other things? I have more powers?"

"You have more _potential_ powers," Tikki corrected. "You'll learn some of them in time. Some you'll never manifest but that's only natural—you're not a goddess. But does that answer your question?"

Marinette nodded. "So, if I fix things now then I won't be able to fix anything that happens later on?"

"Exactly. A rematch with Gaminette is inevitable and you need to save your magic for that. It won't hurt you to be a child for a little while. Although—" Tikki folded her arms "—it is a bit odd that her akuma hasn't multiplied yet."

"Why? Speaking of which, how did you know the akuma would multiply to begin with? Has this happened before?"

Tikki sighed. "The multiplication is a defensive tactic that happens if the butterfly is torn from the host without being recalled. Under normal conditions, these butterflies attempt to reattach themselves to their willing host before it's too late, but the dark powers corrupting these akuma weaponized that instinct and they latch onto other people instead. He probably wasn't even aware it would happen the first time until it did."

"So why don't they multiply every time I free them?"

"Because when you purify them you're removing their 'programming', so to speak, and they return to their neutral state."

"Oh," she murmured, understanding. That…actually made a lot of sense. _File this one under: Things I Wish I'd Known Earlier._

"But since you didn't purify it and it hasn't multiplied, then that can only mean that Hawkmoth himself has instructed it not to."

Marinette blanched. "That's kind of concerning."

"It is," the kwami agreed. "Although, there is a chance he simply does not want to be indirectly responsible for several dozen whiny children."

Tikki grinned impishly and Marinette snorted. "If that's the case then I don't blame him at _all_."

* * *

 Marinette sent Adrien a text at around six in the evening.

_Salut! It's Marinette!_

His reply was almost immediate and she wondered if he'd been waiting for her to finally get around to texting him.

_**Salut my lady! :3** _

_**What's up? Is Gaminette back?** _

_Nope! Just saying hi._

_I remembered you don't have my number._

_Did you get in trouble?_

_**Not really. My father is annoyed. Not happy I snuck out, either.** _

_Uh oh._

_**But he's not mad at you!** _

_**Actually when I told him who you were he seemed more okay.** _

_Really?_ Did that mean Gabriel Agreste remembered and actually liked her?!

_**Really! :D** _

_**But he made a point and I can't stop thinking about it. Why don't you just fix everything?** _

_**Plagg said you couldn't? But I've seen you do it before we capture an akuma.** _

_Oh, yeah. I asked Tikki about that._

_Um, mind if I call you? This will take too long to type._

_**Sure! :3** _

As it happened, they didn't hang up until 10pm.

* * *

Alya took the news that her best friend had been a victim of Gaminette with…less grace than her parents had.

Marinette knew she couldn't keep it from her for forever though she'd hoped they would be able to deal with Gaminette before Alya had to find out. But by the next morning Gaminette had still not reappeared and there were no signs of a multiplying akuma and Marinette decided it was time to tell her. She sent Alya a selfie and waited on her chaise for the response.

She didn't have to wait long.

_**YOU GOT CHILDIFIED?!** _

_**That's not even a word**_ _,_ Marinette text back.

_**I'M COMING OVER. YOU BETTER STILL BE THERE WHEN I ARRIVE.** _

_**And if I'm not?** _

_**THEN YOU'RE GROUNDED.** _

Marinette was still there, of course. She wouldn't have been able to leave even if she'd wanted to. Her parents had—well, they hadn't grounded her but they didn't want her leaving the house by herself. They had established that their teenaged daughter was still kicking around inside the child's mind but the vulnerability of her physical age was making them cautious. She understood, really, she did.

Alya stormed into the living room with a thunderous expression and piercing eyes that immediately locked onto Marinette. Sabine looked over her shoulder at their unannounced guest then pulled an extra bowl down from the cabinet. "Good morning, Alya," she greeted casually, as if teenagers barging in unannounced was an everyday occurrence.

"Why didn't you tell me?!" Alya demanded shrilly.

Marinette winced. "Because I knew you'd freak out. Like you're doing right now."

Her friend sighed, rolling her eyes, and pulled out the barstool next to her. "So how old are you?"

"Best guess: somewhere between eight and nine."

"What's it like?"

"Annoying," she grumbled. "Everything is too big."

Sabine set two bowls, chocolate powder, and milk in front of them, along with a croissant for each. Marinette went about making her chocolate milk and Alya eyed her critically for a few moments before thanking Sabine for breakfast.

"You're welcome," Sabine replied with a smile. "Though to be honest, I expected you a lot sooner."

"Believe me, if I'd known, I would've been here sooner. Just what the heck were you doing all the way over there anyway?" Alya demanded Marinette who paused with the croissant halfway to her mouth.

"Going to a garden," she said lightly then took a bite.

Alya gave her a flat look. "Going to a garden. Alone. Uh huh. Sure. What were you really doing?"

"Going to a garden," Marinette repeated. "And I wasn't alone, I was with Adrien."

"YOU WERE _WHAT_?!"

"I was with Adrien. He asked me if I wanted to hang out so I asked if he wanted to come with me, he said yes, and…yeah."

Alya stared at her like she'd grown a second head. "You are way too calm about this." She looked at Sabine. "She's too calm about this!" To Marinette, " _How are you so calm about this?!_ "

Marinette shrugged and dipped her croissant in the milk. "No idea. I don't have teenage hormones right now so that's probably helping." She took another bite of the croissant. "But it wasn't a big deal," she went on around the food in her mouth. "It's not like it was a date, were just hanging out. We talked a phone a lot last night, though. Did you know he's a huge dork?"

"Yeah, Nino's mentioned it," Alya answered mechanically, still staring at her. "So…you were out with Adrien across the city, the akuma came and you were—oh my god did she get _Adrien_ , too?!"

Marinette nodded. "We didn't get to really do anything after that. After the butterfly got away, we thought it'd be better to go home. And our clothes were too big."

"Uh, they still are. Do you want me to go home and get you some? My little sister's should fit."

"Nope! Ladybug could undo things at any minute, I need to be ready! I can't be stuck in clothes that are too small when that happens, especially if I'm—oh, oh, Mama!" Marinette blurted out as the idea occurred to her. She hopped off her barstool and jumped up and down. "Can I go out if Alya's with me? She's got all those little siblings; you know she'll be able to keep an eye on me. Please, please, please?!"

Alya's jaw dropped. Sabine, however, had already experienced moments where younger-Marinette emerged and was only a little surprised by her daughter's behavior. "I don't see why not," she replied, looking between them. "As long as Alya's alright with that."

"Thanks, Mama! I'm going to get my shoes!"

Marinette was halfway up the stairs before she realized exactly how she'd acted, that Alya hadn't technically agreed, and she hadn't finished her breakfast.

…

"What just happened?" Alya asked.

Sabine could only shrug.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't even write something like this without delving into Miraculous history just a little. JFC.
> 
> Thanks to [peachgreenteelemonade](http://peachgreenteelemonade.tumblr.com/post/152837551357) for the adorable fanart!! X3 
> 
> :D Feel free to come talk to me on my tumblr, [wintermoth](http://wintermoth.tumblr.com). I will be using the tag "[Pint Sized ML](http://wintermoth.tumblr.com/tagged/pint%20sized%20ml)" for everything related to this fic and you can, too. Be sure to put it in the first five tags, though, or I won't see it. 
> 
> **TRANSLATIONS**  
>  Salut - I feel like all Miraculeurs know this one by this point but just in case, "salut" is an informal greeting and farewell, like ciao. In the context of a greeting, the English translation would be "Hey"
> 
> Pièce de résistance - we use this in English from time to time. It signifies the most important thing or event, or the "main dish".


	3. Play Date

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Little did she know that Alya was hard on their tail and taking as many pictures on her phone as she could with plans to one day show them at their wedding.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sweet Jesus we're all gonna need shots of insulin before this is over.

It was Marinette's idea to invite Adrien to hang out with them. Alya had no objections, especially since she'd been rooting for the two of them to get together for months and wasn't about to say _no_ now that Marinette was willingly and calmly prepared to initiate contact. (Honestly, if Alya had known that this was all it would take to get things started between those two, she might have tried to orchestrate an akuma like Gaminette ages ago.)

Marinette sent him a text before they left her house so that by the time they pressed the buzzer on the gate to announce themselves, Nathalie was aware that they were welcome. The gates opened for them without trouble and the two girls strolled inside. They had both been there before, Marinette had even been in Adrien's room, but neither of them had ever had much of a chance to take in the grandeur of the Agreste mansion. She'd seen bigger mansions in pictures but it was quite large on Parisian standards and had a very modern look to it, despite its age.

The front door opened as they were mounting the top step and out bounded Adrien with a grin bright enough to light up the whole courtyard on its own. He made a beeline for his friends and all but pounced on Marinette, wrapping his arms around her in a boisterous hug. She squeaked in surprise but managed to hug him back.

Alya's phone clicked as she snapped a picture of the scene.

Adrien pulled back and grinned at her. "Thank you thank you thank you!"

"Adrien," Nathalie chided from the doorway, frowning disapprovingly at the three youngsters. "Contain yourself."

He winced, grinning sheepishly and Marinette felt a pang of sympathy. While her parents had understood her bouts of childishness and rolled with them, it would seem Adrien had not gotten the same acceptance. What he had gotten, however, were clothes in his size. It didn't really surprise her. Marinette's resourcefulness and insistence had been enough to convince her parents that a new wardrobe was not needed. Adrien, however, was from a higher social circle (and the son of a fashion designer, no less); he would not be allowed to go traipsing about in poorly fitting garments.

"Your father would not approve of this and I am not going to allow you out in public if you cannot be trusted to maintain your image."

His grin faded and he ducked his head. "Yes, of course. I'm sorry. I just…never got to really go out and play when I was this age," he explained. Nathalie's stern expression softened, but only just.

Marinette, on the other hand, was filled with rage. More rage than she thought her tiny body should've been capable of. That wasn't right! That was terrible! She couldn't imagine never getting to go outside and play, never having any friends to play with. She glared at her shoes before Nathalie could see her face and tell Adrien he couldn't go.

"Your bodyguard will be along shortly," Nathalie informed him.

"Oh, um, we don't need a bodyguard," Alya spoke up. Nathalie frowned at her. "I'm Alya, Marinette's best friend, and temporary babysitter. I've been babysitting my little siblings for years, I can keep an eye on them both, no problem."

"I…am not going to try and refute your claims but this is a matter of his safety."

Marinette nearly snorted.

"Well, it's not like anyone is going to recognize him as Adrien Agreste," Alya pointed out. "In fact, more people are likely to think something's up if we have a bodyguard with us. Right now he just looks like an ordinary kid. Two ordinary kids and their ordinary teenage babysitter, nothing to see here."

"Pleeaaasseee, Nathalie," Adrien pleaded. Hearing his tone, Marinette raised her head and gave Nathalie the biggest puppy-eyed look she could muster, folding her hands in front of her face for emphasis.

Nathalie eyed them intently and Marinette could tell the puppy eyes weren't going to work on her just from her expression. And yet…

"Your curfew is 5pm," she informed him curtly. "If anything happens, you are to phone immediately. Understood?"

Adrien nodded vigorously. "Yes, Nathalie!"

Before she could say anything more (or change her mind), Adrien spun around, grabbed Marinette's hand, and pulled her towards the gate.

* * *

 

"You're different," Alya commented as they walked down the street. This close to some of the city's most popular landmarks, the sidewalks were filled with Parisians and tourists alike. No one paid any attention to three random children walking together, even though one of them was wearing a pinned and tied t-shirt and shorts that were obviously too big for her, one was the somewhat recognizable owner of the Ladyblog, and one was an international teen model. Just like Alya had predicted.

Adrien did seem a little more exuberant than he'd been yesterday. He'd let go of their hands the moment they were in the clear though Marinette was very aware of how close he was to her as they walked and she smiled a little every time their arms brushed.

"I'm excited," Adrien corrected. "I really did never get to go out as a kid. This is great! Can we go to that park with the carousel? You know which one I mean? You saw me do a photoshoot there once. I think it's around here."

"Yeah, it's right outside my house," Marinette reminded him.

"Oh, right! Have you ever been on that carousel?"

She nodded. "All the time when I was younger."

"Was it fun?" he asked. Marinette was going to point out it was just a normal carousel, and a small one at that, but then she noticed he was looking at her with wide, curious eyes, and realized that he probably had never ridden one before. Now, under the guise of his younger self with some of the freedom he'd never had at that age, he had a chance. A chance to enjoy himself without having to worry about keeping up his image, the way he could be as Chat Noir, but without the mask.

"Well, it's a bit small, but yeah, it's fun," she answered. "Let's go."

Without looking at Alya to make sure it was okay, Marinette grabbed Adrien's hand and took off in the direction of the park. She dodged around the crowds with practiced ease and Adrien stumbled along behind her for a moment. Then he picked up speed, readjusted his grip on her hand, and the two of them ran side by side up the sidewalk. The ducked and weaved through the people, letting go of each other to run around opposite sides of two large tourists standing in the middle of the sidewalk, only to come back together and interlock their fingers once more.

Little did she know that Alya was hard on their tail and taking as many pictures on her phone as she could with plans to one day show them at their wedding.

So eager to take Adrien on his first carousel ride, she'd forgotten that it cost a euro. Marinette's expression fell when the operator held out his hand for the money and she looked in the direction of home. Maybe her parents would be willing to give her the money if she asked. But when she looked back, Adrien had already fished three euro coins from his pocket and was handing them over.

"Nooo," Marinette protested. "It's your first time ever, you shouldn't have to pay!"

"It's fine," he assured her.

The operator looked at Adrien curiously. "First time ever?"

Marinette nodded. "He's never been on one in his entire life—I know! I couldn't believe it either!" she added at the man's surprised expression.

The operator waved away Adrien's money. "Alright, then. Go on and pick a seat."

Adrien's eyes widened. "Really?"

He jerked his head towards the carousel. "Have fun."

"Thank you!" Adrien cried, stuffing the money back in his pocket. "Let's go! Come on, Alya!" he called over his shoulder.

Alya stood a few feet away with a look on her face that made Marinette suspicious. Equal parts smug, scheming, and amused. "You two go on ahead," she told them, shooing them with her hand. Marinette narrowed her eyes at her but Adrien took her hand and pulled her towards the carousel before she could say anything.

This carousel was small so there were only four seats to choose from: a unicorn, a plane, a submarine, and a ladybug. He made a beeline for the ladybug. She told herself it was probably because that one could easily fit two people inside and not just because it was a…well, y'know.

"Interesting choice for your very first carousel ride," she commented teasingly as he climbed in. "Do you like ladybugs, Adrien?"

Adrien held out his hand to help her inside. "Quite a lot. Especially one in particular."

Marinette's cheeks burned and she ducked her head, letting him pull her into the ladybug. He tried to sit on the left, closer to the center, but she shook her head and nudged him towards the other side. "Trust me, Adrien, the outside is better," she insisted as she wriggled down into the inside seat.

"This is exciting," he whispered, staring ahead with anticipation.

"You…know it just spins around in a circle, right?"

Adrien nodded. "It's the principle of the thing, I guess. I've never gotten to ride one so it's exciting."

"I just don't want you to be let down."

"Well, maybe I would be if I was alone."

He glanced at her, smiling shyly, and Marinette smiled shyly in return. "Alya's right…you're different. I-I didn't really notice yesterday but you're different like this."

"As a kid or as myself?"

"Both, maybe, I guess, but I meant more like… I've seen how you are at school, even around Nino, and I know you as Chat. You're different enough as Adrien and Chat that I never made the connection—of course _now_ it's obvious—but I-I kn know two different sides of you and you're not acting like either of them. It's not just the childishness."

She could tell from the look on his face that her words had hit a little too close to home for him. He lowered his gaze to the floor of the car and pursed his lips. "Do—do you want me to act normal?"

"No!" she blurted out. "I mean, it's okay. You don't have to pretend around me." Acting on impulse, she reached out to scratch a single finger under his chin like she did sometimes when he was Chat. He reacted exactly as anticipated, lifting his chin to give her more access and a small smile appeared on his face. "I don't want you to have to pretend around me, ever. This is new to me." She lowered her hand and his eyes blinked open before flicking to her, completely riveted.

Marinette lowered her hands to her lap. "I know I'm not…exactly the same on either side of my mask, either. You're probably more used to me being a stuttering clumsy mess."

"It's a nice change," he admitted. "We both wore masks and we're the only people who knew each other on both sides of them. I'm okay with finding the middle ground if you are."

"Of course!"

The carousel jolted slightly and Adrien's hand flew to Marinette's, alarm written across his features. She giggled and she gave his hand a reassuring squeeze as the carousel begin to move. He relaxed and settled back against the seat of the ladybug. He didn't say anything for the first few rotations and instead watched everything around him. The scenery passing by, the central column they rotated around, and the mechanical workings just barely visible over it. Marinette nudged him and motioned to the designs on the canopy over their heads and he spent two rotations just staring at those.

A few feet away from the carousel, Alya stood with her phone in her hand, filming the whole thing. Mariette shot her a sour look as she glided past and Alya gave her a thumbs up.

"This is fun." Adrien's voice drew Marinette's attention away from Alya. His eyes were shining as he smiled at her and she had to bite the inside of her lip to keep in check the huge grin that threatened to emerge.

It was so weird. She still had feelings for them but they were different. She wanted to use the word 'less' but that didn't seem right. She didn't care any less for him—if anything, knowing that this boy was both her partner and her crush made her care even more—but it was less…powerful. Less overwhelming. She had a feeling it was because she was a child right now and if she was right then how would it be when she went back to normal? How was she going to feel and behave?

Some of her distress must have shown on her face because concern appeared on his. "Are you alright, my lady?"

Marinette shrugged. "Just…thinking. I don't want things to be weird when we go back to normal."

"Me either. …So let's not let them."

"Is it really going to be that simple?"

He shrugged. "I don't see why not."

She shook her head, smiling fondly. "Chaton, chaton," she murmured.

The carousel slowed to a stop a few minutes later and Adrien thanked the operator profusely for the free ride.

"Did you have fun?" Alya asked with a knowing look in her eye. Adrien nodded. "So what do you two want to do now? Up to you, I'm just chaperoning this thing. Oh, wait, hold on." She pulled her phone out of her pocket, swiping her finger to unlock it, and frowned as she read something on screen. "Oh, hey, the mayor's holding a press conference about the akuma situation in half an hour."

Marinette and Adrien glanced at each other.

"I wonder if Ladybug and Chat Noir are going to be there," she said to herself.

Well, they certainly hadn't had any plans to be! She hadn't even known about it. Marinette looked at Adrien again curiously and he shrugged. _I had no clue_ , his expression said. All things considering, it would probably be a good idea for them to make an appearance. Her brow furrowed determinedly and inclined her head in the general direction of Hôtel de Ville. Adrien jerked his chin down in agreement.

There was just one problem. They'd have to give Alya the slip. Marinette looked around the park, quickly deducing that they wouldn't be able to do that here. Not enough people and too much open space. They'd only make her suspicious if they tried. If they went home, they'd have to worry about her nosy parents coming in and finding them missing. They would have to get somewhere more crowded.

"Do you want to go?" Marinette asked.

Alya lowered her phone. "Seriously? I thought you two wanted to hang out in the park."

She shrugged. "I don't mind. Do you, Adrien?"

"Not at all," he agreed with a shake of his head. "And maybe Ladybug and Chat Noir will show up!"

They had her.

* * *

 

The area around Hôtel de Ville was just as packed as they'd anticipated. There were the usual amount of tourists and pedestrians as well as a number that had likely been drawn in by the promise of a public announcement. Members of the press were there and more were coming; representatives from television stations, radio stations, magazines, and those with no discernable affiliation but with appropriate equipment at the ready to capture the mayor's words.

Marinette and Adrien remained at Alya's heels as they approached the building. She was planning on waiting until Alya was distracted by the press conference to sneak away and was counting on Adrien doing what he always did and following her lead since they hadn't had a moment to discuss their escape plan. She wasn't expecting him to stop abruptly in the middle of the sidewalk. She noticed immediately and stopped walking but Alya kept on going.

"Hey, uh, Alya?" he called.

Alya turned around, realized they'd stopped, and came back quickly. "What's up?"

"Um…" Adrien fidgeted nervously, glancing at the crowd of people amassing in front of the building. He bit his lip and then looked up at her with a wary expression. "That's um…a lot of people. W-would it be alright if I just stayed over there by the fountain?" he pointed to the broad fountain less than a hundred feet away.

"I thought you wanted to watch the press conference."

"I'll be able to see from here," he insisted. "A-and Marinette will stay with me, won't you?"

"Yeah, sure," she agreed immediately. She could see where he was going with this. _Clever kitty…_

Alya narrowed her eyes shrewdly. "You know, if you two want to be alone, you can just say."

Marinette squeaked and Adrien's cheeks flushed scarlet. "No, it's not that! Really! I just…I didn't like large crowds when I was a kid and I don't like them right now. I wasn't expecting this. I'm sorry."

Her expression softened in understanding. "No, no, it's okay. I get it. We can stay."

"No, you can go!" Adrien said quickly, holding up his hands. "Honestly, don't miss out on my account. You want good footage for your blog, right? You won't get it over here," he pointed out. "The angle will be weird and the water will just mess up the recording, right?"

Alya bit her lip uncertainly. She looked between them for a moment, considering. "Will you two be alright here if I go?"

They nodded.

"If anyone tries anything, I'll kick them in the shin," Marinette promised. "And stab them with one of these pins in my shorts."

"I'll yell. Really loud." Adrien added seriously.

Alya chuckled. "Alright. And you won't tell your parents I let you out of my sight?"

"Honestly, the whole babysitting thing is pretty redundant," Marinette grumbled. "He ditches his bodyguard all the time and I'm used to running around on my own. We'll be fine, Alya. Go on before it gets too crowded!"

She nodded. "Right, okay! Behave you two!"

Alya ran off excitedly and they both stood still, watching her go, until she disappeared into the throng of adults in search of the optimal spot to record from. When she was out of sight, Marinette casually lifted her hand and scratched Adrien under the chin for the second time that day. " _Bien joué, chaton_ ," she sing-songed.

He chuckled. "Careful, my lady, you're going to spoil me if you keep doing that."

"Next you'll start asking for ear scratches."

"I was thinking more like belly rubs."

"Don't be greedy."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just to be clear: this IS the carousel seen in Climatika/Stormy Weather that Manon and Alya were trapped on. 
> 
> And before anyone gets up in arms, Adrien and Marinette are physically old enough that they don't need constant supervision. Alya is trusting them to stay put and handle themselves because she also recognizes that they're still responsible teenagers in there.
> 
> :D Feel free to come talk to me on my tumblr, [wintermoth](http://wintermoth.tumblr.com). I will be using the tag "[Pint Sized ML](http://wintermoth.tumblr.com/tagged/pint%20sized%20ml)" for everything related to this fic and you can, too. Be sure to put it in the first five tags, though, or I won't see it. 
> 
> **TRANSLATIONS**  
>  Hôtel de Ville - basically, Paris's city hall, "state house", government admin building, whatever you wanna call it, and has absolutely nothing to do with Cruella de Vil... _Cruella de Vil...if she doesn't scare you, no evil thing will!_


	4. Shenanigans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As a teenager, Chat Noir was average in size for a boy his age and would have been able to stand behind the podium and address the crowd without any difficulty. As a child…not so much.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case there were any doubts, this story contains all the fluff and crack that has built up from months of working on Guardians.

Finding a secluded place to transform this close to the city hall and an impending press conference was harder than they'd anticipated. Marinette noticed that adults' eyes were drawn to two children running unaccompanied along the sidewalk, if only for a moment, but that moment could potentially make all the difference. Chat found them a narrow little alley just off one of the side streets to duck into and she stood between him and the entrance while he transformed.

"Okay, we should probably get up top before you transform." He slid his arm around her waist and she heard him grab his staff. "Don't want anyone seeing two weird lights and getting suspicious."

She frowned. Hang on. She'd been in this position before, she knew what his suit felt like against her, both in her suit and out of it, and it was not like this. Something had changed. She looked down just as he launched them into the air with his staff and gasped when she saw a bare hand and a…loose black sleeve?

"Here we go!" he announced as they landed and let go of her. She spun around, looked him up and down once, and had to mash her lips together to stop from laughing. He grinned smugly and retracted his baton. "Thank you for riding _L'ascenseur de Chat Noir_ —"

He stopped talking quite abruptly and held up his gloveless hands. Gone was the sleek suit that had always looked suspiciously like leather. Now he wore a black hoodie with a bell for the the zipper, black pants, and his shoes looked more like converse than boots with bright white laces. His tail had lightened a few shades matching the hems on his hoodie but remained about the same length, while his ears and mask remained entirely unchanged.

He looked down at himself, tugged on one of his sleeves just to confirm he wasn't seeing this, and then let out a loud, "Whaaaat?!"

Marinette couldn't help it. She burst out laughing.

"Hey!" Chat Noir complained. "This isn't funny! Look what he did to my suit! Tikki, why did he do that?"

"Because he thought it'd be funny," Tikki giggled, floating out into the open. "Your suits are meant to reflect the era, your culture, and your age. We've never had wielders this young before. I think you look cute."

"Nooo," he complained, "I'm not cute."

"Yes you are," they both replied simultaneously.

"Noo, my lady. You're supposed to say I'm dashing or devilishly handsome. Not cute."

Marinette cracked up and Tikki snickered behind her paws. Chat's lip jutted out in a pout which did nothing to help his case and only made her laugh harder. He protested weakly for a few more moments but finally gave up and instead stared at her with a look of near wonder as she tried to control her laughter.

"Wh-why are you looking at me like that?" she asked between her gasps and giggles.

"No reason!" he said a little too quickly, further betrayed by the tell-tale reddening of his cheeks. "S-shouldn't you be transforming?"

"Oh, yeah." Marinette was about to say the words to prompt her transformation when it occurred to her that if Plagg was able to change Adrien's suit on a whim then Tikki could very well do the same. She looked up at the kwami. "Are you going to change my suit, too?"

Tikki winked.

Marinette eyed her contemplatively for a moment. Tikki was nice and liked her. She wouldn't give her something completely ridiculous. Inhaling through her nose, Marinette cried out, "Transform me!"

Tikki giggled as she went flying into the earrings. Light flared and power danced across her body like a million little ladybug legs. With the transformation came the familiar sensation of security. She felt lighter, stronger, ready to fight and fly. When the light faded, she looked down at herself eagerly.

The first thing she noticed was the skirt, short and loose, it swished around her thighs as she moved. It was attached to a simple dress with short sleeves, the same red and black print as her suit. Her legs were covered by leggings a shade or two darker than the dress and she actually had shoes! Black boots which covered her calves, sloping higher in the front to end in a rounded point just below her knee. Her arms were bare below the sleeves until her wrists, where her hands were protected by a pair of fitted black gloves. She felt at her face to see if her mask had changed shape but it appeared to have stayed the same.

Chat Noir laughed merrily. "Lookin' good, my lady!"

"Oh yeah," Ladybug said. "I _like_ this—don't think I can pull it off as a teenager—but I like it!"

"It's so cute."

"Oh, so you can dish it but you can't take it?"

"You've always been cute, Marinette."

"Look who's talk—" Ladybug's eyes widened and she mashed her lips together. Too late. He'd heard.

A sly grin slid slowly across his face, revealing his slightly pointed canines which made him look more devious than ever before. "What was that?" he asked. She narrowed her eyes at him and he slinked forward. "Did you just say what I think you said?"

"No."

"I think you diiiid," he sing-songed. "You think I'm _cuuuteee_."

"I think you're annoying."

" _Cuute_ and annoying."

"DON'T WE HAVE A PRESS CONFERENCE TO CRASH?"

Chat Noir cackled gleefully.

Huffing, Ladybug reached for her yo-yo and noticed that she now had a belt around her waist the same color as her spots. There was a slight resistance as she pulled on her yo-yo but upon inspection could find no adhering surfaces or hooks on the belt or her weapon. Like Chat's baton, suit and weapon simply attached to each other.

She hurled her yo-yo in the direction of Hôtel de Ville and swung off. Chat followed her, still laughing.

Two minutes later they were on the roof of their destination with no one any the wiser. They stashed their weapons and slunk towards the edge of the building, laying down on their stomachs to peer down at the crowd gathered for the press conference. The mayor hadn't emerged yet but it had to be starting any minute now. Ladybug spotted Alya near the front of the crowd in what she thought was a pretty decent spot. She was going to freak when she saw their costume changes.

"Okay, so what's the plan?" Chat asked. "What's the story?"

"The truth," Ladybug said. "We were victims of the akuma and it put us at a disadvantage. We did free girl but the butterfly escaped. It will be back, sooner rather than later, and we'll be ready."

"We have no idea why there's not an army of Gaminettes already, we have no idea if there will be, and you can't turn anyone back to their normal age until after we have the akuma."

She sighed. "We sound so incompetent when you put it that way."

Mayor Bourgeois' arrival was heralded by a surge of voices from below and the flashing of cameras. Both heroes watched the older man descend the steps, waving politely at the crowds. Pedestrians were lured in by the sudden commotion and by the time he reached the podium, at least fifteen more people had been drawn into the crowd to hear the mayor speak.

" _Parisians et Parisiennes_ ," he greeted. "Thank you for coming. Today I am here to discuss the recent situation that has befallen our city. As you're all aware, yesterday brought yet another attack by the man known as Hawkmoth. After reviewing the known details surrounding the incident, we have determined the victim to be a young child whose abilities involved reverting those she came into contact with into children. At this time, there do not appear to be any detrimental effects to this change. Although reports suggest there are slight behavioral changes, those affected have retained their full mental cognitive abilities. In other words, they may look like children, but mentally they remain whatever age they truly are, and my office and I are advising that they be treated as such."

"Sir!" a man shouted from the crowd. "Where are Ladybug and Chat Noir? What do they have to say?"

Mayor Bourgeois took the interruption in stride. "We have been attempting to get into contact with Ladybug and Chat Noir since yesterday afternoon but, so far, they have not responded. So at this time—"

"That's our cue," Ladybug whispered, pushing herself to her feet.

"Ooh, ooh, wait, my lady!" Chat Noir sprang up, tail flicking excitedly behind him. "Can I do the talking?"

She blinked in surprise. "What?"

"You _always_ get to do the talking," he pointed out petulantly. "I want to this time!"

Ooh, what a time for younger Adrien to take the wheel. Ladybug frowned pointedly. "I'm not sure that's a good idea. Is your head in the right place?"

Chat Noir blinked and seemed to realize what had just happened. "It's also my fault. It's better if I speak," he added soberly.

Ladybug considered him. She knew from experience that Chat was more than willing to step back and let her have the spotlight. Now that she knew he was Adrien, she could understand why he didn't mind their fame not being equal. He probably enjoyed having someone else get all the attention for once. Now here he was, asking for permission to bring the eyes of the city on himself instead of her. She might not have trusted Chat Noir to make this speech yesterday but now that she knew Adrien was under the mask….

"Alright," she said. "But if anything goes wrong, I take over. Deal?"

He nodded. "Deal."

Mayor Bourgeois was mid-sentence when Ladybug and Chat Noir suddenly landed on the platform just a few feet away. Their sudden arrival triggered a flurry of movement and camera flashes while the noise level of the crowd swelled. They straightened up, revealing their altered costumes, and Ladybug swore she heard a loud shriek that sounded suspiciously like Alya's.

The mayor regarded them with a bit of suspicion and covered the microphone with his hand. "Ladybug? Chat Noir?"

Ladybug nodded and Chat gave him a two-fingered salute. "That's us," she replied.

When the mayor didn't immediately accept her word for it, Chat gave him a flat look and pointed up at the roof. "Do you know anyone else who can make a jump like that?"

Mayor Bourgeois cleared his throat. "Of course. Er…yes, thank you. Thank you for finally coming. I don't suppose you've come with answers?"

"Actually, we have," Ladybug said. "And sorry for not coming sooner. We actually didn't know you'd been trying to get in contact with us. The last 24 hours have been very…strange."

He looked her up and down once. "Quite."

"We're here to address the people."

"Of course." Mayor Bourgeois stood back and motioned for her to proceed. The look of surprise on his face when Chat Noir stepped forward instead was almost comical.

As a teenager, Chat Noir was average in size for a boy his age and would have been able to stand behind the podium and address the crowd without any difficulty. As a child…not so much. Ladybug could tell he was going to have problems the moment he got close enough for her to notice the size differences between him and the podium. His head was likely visible over the podium if you were far enough back in the crowd but from the sudden looks of disappointment and shifting of the crowd, those up front were unable to see him well. The second and arguably most important problem…

" _Parisians_ —" he started to say but his voice didn't come through the speakers.

Frowning, Chat jumped once, twice, his mouth only just reaching the microphone's height each time. He tried pulling the microphone down towards him and stood on his tip toes to try and get closer.

"I can't reach," he grumbled, looking at Ladybug for help. Mayor Bourgeois frowned and took a step forward to put an end to it.

Thinking fast, Ladybug darted in between them and turned her back to Chat. "Up," she commanded. Chat gawked at her for a moment before her meaning registered and he laughed then climbed on her back. He wrapped his legs around her waist and she tucked her arms around them securely than stood. The crowd _roared_ with laughter.

He weighed to Ladybug what a tray of cookies weighed to Marinette. A few seconds to adjust her balance and then she turned to face the crowd again. The laughter and camera flashes continued and Ladybug just knew this was going to be on the news and all across social media within the hour.

Chat Noir laughed and adjusted the mic again so it was level with his mouth. "Short people unite!" he declared, lifting his fist in the air.

Ladybug rolled her eyes. "You're like 175 centimeters!" she protested and, oops, that was her voice coming out of the speakers.

" _Normally,_ " he corrected,"but right now I am among the vertically challenged."

Mayor Bourgeois cleared his throat loudly behind them and both of the heroes sobered.

"Can you be quiet now, please?" Chat Noir asked politely into the microphone. "I have important things to say." The noise from the crowd, which was slowly petering out on its own, finally died away as people regained their composure. He waited a few more seconds to be sure before beginning. "Thank you. So, I think the mayor covered most of it, and as you can see, we both got tagged by the akuma, too. I would like to stress that we're still ourselves in here—" he tapped his head "—and we would appreciate being treated as such.

"Now, as for the current state of things, we apologize. Or, more importantly, _I_ apologize, because it was my fault the akuma got away. I wasn't able to adjust to being like this quickly enough and despite my best efforts, the akuma got away. It has likely returned to Hawkmoth where it will remain until—actually, ugh, forget it, I'm just gonna talk normal."

Ladybug tightened her grip on his legs in warning.

"Basically, the butterfly went home, and it's gonna stay there until that little girl gets upset again, then he'll send it back."

"And he will send it back," she added. "Sooner rather than later."

"Yeah because he can only have one at a time."

"How do you know that?" someone shouted from the crowd. Ladybug frowned slightly. Weren't they supposed to wait until the end for questions?

"Um…I think that counts as superhero business?" He looked down and she nodded. "Yep, superhero business. Trust us, he can only have one. She'll be back. But, uh, everyone who got turned into a kid, I'm sorry but, um, you're kinda stuck like this. We all are."

Members of the cried out in shock, protest, and even anger. Then came the questions. Why? How? What was going on? Why couldn't Ladybug fix this? Had she lost her powers? Was this Chat Noir's fault? (Ladybug scowled when she heard that one.)

"What is the meaning of this?" Mayor Bourgeois hissed in Ladybug's ear and she jumped, jerking around to face him. Chat yelped, grabbing the podium to steady himself.

"Wait," Ladybug instructed, frowning at his critical expression, then turned back to the podium. "Bring the mic down."

Chat pushed the mic down obediently and she leaned forward. "Let us finish! This isn't permanent! It's not forever!" The crowd's shouting died away but a loud murmur remained, flowing through the crowd like water, and she figured that was good enough. "I'll be able to change us all back eventually, it's just not safe for me to right now. Nothing's wrong but this is how it has to be for now."

"But—" Chat pulled the mic back up "—for those of you like us, you should make the most of it! You're a _kid_ again! And its summer! Go do all the fun things you haven't been able to do in years! Do things you always wanted to but never could! Go…I don't know…go to work and see what it's like to do your job as a little kid! Unless it's dangerous, then, uh, don't do that. But have fun! This is a once in a lifetime opportunity and it'll never happen again. Probably. We hope. And, hey, it could be a lot worse."

"ANY QUESTIONS?!" Ladybug asked loudly before he could continue that tangent any further.

Voices overlapped as people shouted out their questions and after deliberating for a moment, Chat pointed to one someone in the crowd. "You with the face. …In the red shirt."

"Why can't you undo the damage done by the akuma?" a man called out.

"Because reasons," Chat deadpanned.

"Chat!" Ladybug protested. Clearly younger Chat Noir had resurfaced and that meant his time was up. She heaved backwards, letting go of his legs, and dumped him onto the stage. He yowled in protest as he went, arms scrabbling at the air to catch himself and finding nothing. He landed on his back with his legs in the air.

…Okay so _maybe_ younger Marinette was out to play, too. They needed to wrap this up before they damaged their reputations permanently.

"Laaddyyyy." She heard him whine petulantly over the audience's laughter.

Ignoring him, Ladybug stepped around the podium so she could be seen, grabbed her yo-yo from her waist, and into the air. "Lucky charm!" _Please Tikki_. Light flared in the air and she held out her hands to catch the ladybug megaphone when it dropped.

She pressed the power button and raised it to her mouth. "Sorry," she apologized and the chatter died. "What Chat Noir _meant_ to say was that it's not something that we can or should discuss publically. As you can see, my powers are working perfectly fine. But even miracles have their limits and right now I'm respecting one of those limits. That's all I will say on the subject. Next?"

Alya's hand whipped into the air so fast Ladybug was surprised she didn't dislocate it.

"Miss Ladyblogger," she said, pointing. Behind then Chat had picked himself up and was standing dutifully at her shoulder. She could feel him shifting restlessly just behind her.

"What happened to your costumes?!" Alya yelled excitedly with her phone held forward.

"Magic having fun at our expense. I'm sure they'll go back to normal when this is all over, too. And if not, well…" Ladybug looked down at herself and rocked her hips from side to side. "At least this skirt is swishy."

More laughter from the audience. She smiled, only half joking. It was a very nice skirt. Knowing Tikki, it wouldn't hinder her movement either.

The mayor cleared his throat loudly and Ladybug turned to see him standing at the podium once more. "That will be all the questions for today."

"Why?" Chat asked. "We've got time." Ladybug's earring beeped. "…Some time," he amended. The mayor threw him a withering look and Ladybug realized they'd overstayed their welcome.

"That's alright, Chat," Ladybug said into the megaphone. "We've said all we came to say and I'm sure the mayor is fully capable of handling everything else on his own. Thank you for allowing us the stage, monsieur," she added, dipping into a polite curtsey for good measure.

She switched the megaphone off, pulled out her yo-yo, and threw it at the roof of Hôtel de Ville. With a flick of her wrist, she triggered the retracting mechanism and soared into the air. People cheered as she went and those on stage stared after her, Chat Noir included.

When Chat saw she had landed safely, he turned back to the crowd. He noticed several of them watching him with anticipation, waiting for him to depart or speak further. He grinned, grabbing his baton with one fist, and thrusting the other into the air. " _VIVE LA FRANCE!"_ he yelled because he could. Cheers met his words and his grin widened.

Giving the crowd a two-finger salute, he extended his baton and catapulted up to the roof. Ladybug was waiting for him with raised eyebrows and a look that said, _'really?'_ He laughed jovially. "I've always wanted to say that!"

* * *

 

The departure of Ladybug and Chat Noir pretty much spelled the end of the press conference. Though Mayor Bourgeois tried to redirect the crowd's attention to himself since he apparently had a few more points to make, most people had gotten what they'd come for (and then some!) and were no longer interested. A few more diligent reporters remained but many, like Alya, were content to disperse. Being smaller than most of those around her had its advantages and she was able to slip out of the crowd without causing much of a fuss. The moment she broke free from the throng of people she paused to upload a copy of her video to her cloud storage.

She'd edit the footage when she got home, which would need to be soon if she wanted to be punctual. Hopefully she could convince Marinette and Adrien to come home with her or go to Marinette's house.

Oh, right. Marinette and Adrien. She needed to get back them. Madame Cheng and Nathalie would not be pleased if they found out she'd taken her eyes off of them, even for something like this. She wouldn't blame them, either, she really shouldn't have left the kids. She wouldn't have left her sister their age over here by herself, that was for sure. Luckily for her, Marinette and Adrien were responsible and were going to be exactly…where…she'd…

Alya looked up and down along the length of the fountain but she couldn't see them. Frowning, she hurried over to the fountain and looked up and down again for good measure. No Adrien, no Marinette. A child's rambunctious laugh came from the other side and she rushed around, expecting to see her friends sitting on the edge or something. Except, it wasn't them. The laughter belonged to a boy with dark skin who was at least eleven years old. Neither of her friends were anywhere to be seen.

Worry flooded through her system…followed by a wave of fear. "Marinette?" Alya called out. Cupping her hands over her mouth, she called again. "Marinette? Adrien?" She turned around slowly, calling their names every few seconds. She went to the other end of the fountain and tried again.

Then she tried calling their phones. The first time they both went straight to voicemail. She sent them both texts. Called again. Circled the fountain and shouted their names. Across the plaza, the press and crowds were dispersing. She couldn't see any children. None of the shops in the immediate vicinity struck her as anything that would appeal to children their age, either. No toys, music, books, food, or any manner of shiny objects.

Five minutes later and there was still no sign of or response from them and Alya was starting to panic. Maybe they'd both gone home? But if she called to check then she'd have to admit that she'd taken her eyes off them and then what?

How could Marinette do this to her? Answer: she wouldn't. She wouldn't just ditch her like this, not now. Something had to have happened. What was she going to _do_?

Desperate times called for desperate measures.

She frantically scrolled through her contacts and selected the only person who could help her now. He answered on the fourth ring with a casual, " _Yo_!" Like there was nothing wrong at all.

"Nino! You gotta help me! I lost the kids!"

" _Kids? What kids?"_ he asked, flabbergasted.

Too panicked to think of a coherent answer, Alya blurted out, " _OUR_ KIDS!"

There was a pause followed by a panicked yelp and a loud thud. _"WE HAVE KIDS?! HOW DO WE HAVE KIDS? WE ONLY KISSED THAT ONE TIME."_

"No, no, no! Our kids! Marinette and Adrien! I lost them!"

" _Okay okay okay, Alya, dude, my girl, okay, I literally have no idea what's happening in this conversation. Or life in general at this second. Back up, slow down, explain. What. Kids?"_

"Adrien and Marinette got turned into kids by the akuma. Didn't he tell you?"

"… _Uh, no. He kind of forgot to mention that."_

"Long story short, they're kids and I'm babysitting but I left them alone at the fountain near Hôtel de Ville to go record the press conference and I came back and they're _gone_! I was supposed to be watching them! If I call either of their homes, then they'll just panic. You have to help me!"

Nino cussed under his breath and she heard movement on the other end of the line. _"Are you still in the courtyard?"_

"Yes."

" _I'll be there in ten. Stay calm, keep looking. I'll try to call Adrien."_

"I already called them both five times."

" _I'll be right there, babe."_

* * *

Meanwhile, Adrien and Marinette were walking out of an ice cream store. They'd realized they would need an explanation for not being the fountain when Alya came looking and Marinette's quick thinking had prompted them to stop in the little confectionary shop before heading back. Each of them had a cone in their hands—chocolate for Adrien, strawberry for Marinette—and butter pecan for Alya as a peace offering. She knew Alya would probably be worried but, hopefully, they would make it back before she had time to panic.

It was not to be.

When they arrived back at the fountain, they almost immediately spotted Alya standing on the high ground at the opposite end, scanning the crowds intently with her hand over her eyes. It was a little funny until they saw her face.

"Uh oh," Adrien muttered and licked his ice cream. "She looks upset. …How much does she like butter pecan?"

Alya's eyes locked onto them and her whole body tensed.

"Not enough," Marinette replied as their chaperone jumped down and made a beeline towards them. "No improve this time. Stick to the plan."

"Sure thing, princess."

Alya descended on them with a fury she usually reserved for Chloe Bourgeois the rudest of tourists. "WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN!?" she shrieked. "I'VE BEEN LOOKING EVERYWHERE FOR YOU!"

Hunching his shoulders, Adrien slowly shuffled behind Marinette.

"YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO STAY HERE! WHAT IF SOMEONE HAD—I THOUGHT SOMEONE HAD TAKEN YOU BOTH!"

"We got bored," Adrien said petulantly, "and we wanted ice cream."

"I got you butter pecan," Marinette added, holding the cone up and smiling hopefully. Alya's eyes flicked between the cone and Marinette's face with disbelief. After a few seconds, her smile began to fade and Adrien inched further behind the safety of her body.

"You can't just wander off like that!" Alya snapped through her teeth. "You were supposed to _wait here for me_. I would've taken you if you'd just waited and asked!"

"Alya," Marinette said slowly, "we're sixteen."

Alya's mouth opened in surprise, like she'd forgotten. Perhaps she had, on some level. She looked between them both for a moment before she finally, _finally_ relaxed. Her shoulders slumped in relief. "I hate you both," she groaned and took the ice cream cone from Marinette.

Adrien peeked around her head. Seeing the danger had passed, he stepped out of his hiding place and Marinette frowned at him, unimpressed. He grinned sheepishly. So much for her protective partner.

"Alya!"

Marinette and Adrien looked up to see Nino jogging towards them from the direction of his house. From the look of him, Marinette guessed that he'd run the whole way. She glanced at Alya in surprise and her friend gave her a pointed look before turning to greet Nino.

His eyes fell on the two kids standing behind her and his stride slowed to a walk. He stopped a short distance away from them and stared. Marinette took a bite out of her ice cream to hide her amused smile and Adrien grinned unabashedly at his friend.

"Freaky," Nino declared after another moment of staring. He shook his head once then crossed the remaining distance between them. "Y'know, when I said I'd help you look I wasn't expecting it to be this easy."

Alya huffed. "They _just_ showed up. Apparently they decided to ditch Ladybug and Chat Noir's speech and go get ice cream." She shot them an icy look over her shoulder.

"Sorry, Nino, if we'd known you were coming, I'd have bought one for you, too." Adrien apologized.

"Dude, forget the ice cream. I'm more upset at the fact I had to find out about this from _Alya_."

"If it makes you feel any better, I didn't find out until this morning," Alya told him. "Through a selfie."

"I was hoping we'd be fixed before it mattered," Marinette explained.

"I honestly forgot," Adrien admitted. "My father was...not happy about this."

"Yeah, by the way, how exactly _did_ this—" he gestured up and down at their bodies "—even happen? The akuma was over in the Sixteenth."

Alya smiled slyly and turned around, putting her free hand on her hip. "Yeah, tell us: what _were_ you doing over in the Sixteenth together?"

Marinette frowned at her best friend. She knew _darn_ well why they'd been over in that part of the city (or at least the cover story they'd come up with). Why was she acting like she didn't know anything?

"Together?" Nino repeated, looking at Marinette and Adrien for confirmation. Marinette sighed and took another bite of ice cream.

"Yes," Adrien declared without a hint of embarrassment and looped his arm through Marinette's. "Together."

"Dude."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dude.
> 
>  
> 
> :D Feel free to come talk to me on my tumblr, [wintermoth](http://wintermoth.tumblr.com). I will be using the tag "[Pint Sized ML](http://wintermoth.tumblr.com/tagged/pint%20sized%20ml)" for everything related to this fic and you can, too. Be sure to put it in the first five tags, though, or I won't see it. 
> 
> **TRANSLATIONS**  
>  "L'ascenseur de Chat Noir" - The Chat Noir Elevator
> 
> "Parisians et Parisiennes" - basically, "Ladies and Gentlemen" but referring specifically to Parisian citizens. In the French dub, Papillon starts his evil speech in origins by addressing the city's residents like this. 'Et' means 'and', pronounced like "A" in English. 
> 
> "VIVE LA FRANCE!" - "LONG LIVE FRANCE!" This is probably the most iconic French phrase I know. Basically, Chat Noir is being a little shit here and giving into same kind of temptation that we all resist every time we want to pull the fire alarm or make stupid faces at a news camera.
> 
> 175 centimeters = About 5'7 or 5'8.
> 
> Also, quick note about Nino's questioning there at the end. "The akuma was over in the Sixteenth." This refers to the 16th Arrondissement which is in the eastern part of the city. Even though the show says Marinette lives in the fictitious 21st Arrondissement, I'm the kind of writer who needs a realistic frame of reference for things, and based on landmarks and locations in the show -- **except** the fucking Eiffel Tower -- I like to think that Marinette and Adrien live in the 4th, on la Rive Droite. Hôtel de Ville and Place du Châtelet, both of which are seen in the show, are within this area. The Louvre is also nearby - easily reachable in a few minutes with superhero speed. So with this in mind, Gaminette's rampage occurred approximately 5 kilometers away.


	5. Gamers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette bobbed back in forth in her usual victory dance, swinging her arms around. Adrien glowered at her but the corner of his lip twitched and gave him away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay~ Enjoy more cute.

Sabine took one look at Adrien and immediately invited him to stay for lunch. An invitation which she extended to Alya as well out of courtesy but Alya declined with a wink in Marinette's direction before she left. She said had footage to edit for the blog and didn't want to use the "crappy free" software Marinette had on her computer. Nino had already gone back home since he'd left suddenly without much of an explanation for his folks.

Adrien, of course, accepted the offer enthusiastically and stepped outside to call and inform Natalie. Marinette noted that he didn't say 'ask for permission.'

"He's so thin," Sabine muttered when he was out of earshot.

"He's a model, Mama," Marinette reminded her.

"He's a child." She looked down at her daughter. "From what I can see, your weight stayed proportional to your body, and I don't see why it would be different for him. He's too skinny. Model or not, he's still young and he needs food."

"He probably isn't allowed to have a lot of calories," she mumbled. Not enough to sustain him with his activities as Chat Noir on top of his athletics. He had to be making up for the missing calories somehow. …She hoped he was.

Sabine hummed disapprovingly.

"Mama."

"Fine. Just let me feed him."

Marinette snorted.

Adrien walked back into the bakery with the smile on his face. "She doesn't have a problem with it!" he announced. "And she's not going to tell my father, either," he added with a mischievous grin.

"Why would he have a problem?" Sabine asked curiously.

Adrien shrugged. "I don't know, he's just—he has problems with things that I don't really think are a big deal. Or even worth it. Nathalie knows, that's why she's willing to keep quiet. She can tell it means a lot to me so she's not going to risk it. She works for my father but…she's on my side when she can be."

Sabine's expression tightened but she didn't press him further and shook her head quickly. "I need to go help your father. Why don't you kids head on up? I'll start lunch in about half an hour."

Marinette inclined her head towards the back door and took off. "Thanks Mama!"

They ran up the stairs together to the living room. She thought she might have heard her father shout something about no running in the house but she wasn't sure so she didn't slow down. She could always deny hearing him if he decided to scold her later.

"Your mother is very nice," he commented as they went. "Both your parents are. You're lucky."

She was, she knew she was. She slowed to a stop at the top of the stairs and turned around. He nearly bumped into her, catching himself on the railing at the last second, and cocked his head curiously. "You know…they won't care if you come around more often. I think they'd like it. …I would."

Adrien's eyes searched her face for a moment and then he grinned. "Is that your way of asking me to hang out more in the future."

"Yeah."

"As…myself?"

"Yeah. You won't have to hide any here, either. Well, no more than I do."

He looked at her like she'd just told him Christmas had come early. "Okay," he said simply and that was that.

They were halfway up the steps to her room when it occurred to Marinette that her walls were still…decorated…with some rather incriminating photos. She froze.

"What?" he asked behind her.

"IJUSTREMEMBEREDIDIDN'TCLEANUPEARLIER. UM. WAIT DOWNSTAIRS I'LL BE RIGHT BACK!" She stumbled on the next stair, caught herself on her hands, then scampered up the last few stairs on all fours. She pushed the trap door up, darting through the opening, and slammed it shut, but not before she caught sight of his bewildered expression.

"Tikki!" Marinette hissed. Her kwami flew out of her bag and gave her a grin that was altogether too cheeky in Marinette's opinion. With a salute, her kwami zipped over to the wall and began snatching up the highest magazine clippings. Marinette frantically grabbed at the ones she could reach without help. Last time they'd done this there had been a close call or two with some forgotten photos. This time she was sure to grab everything and shoved everything in one of her drawers where there was no chance of him finding them. There was nothing she could do about the pull down right now and instead Tikki draped the cord over the top so neither of the children could reach it. Then Tikki did one last sweep of the space while Marinette changed her desktop background to one of the default options before putting it back to sleep.

"All clear," Tikki reported, "but Marinette…I don't think we should put them back up later."

Marinette looked at her kwami, considering.

"It's up to you but…well, you invited him to come over a lot more and we can't do this every time. You could be taking them down and putting them up once a day! And what if he shows up as Chat Noir or something? It just seems kind of—"

She shook her head. "It's okay, Tikki. You're right. I don't think I would've put them back up anyway. I should've taken them down yesterday. It doesn't feel…right anymore, I guess."

Tikki smiled.

Marinette opened her door and gave Adrien the all clear. He smiled bemusedly at her as he entered her room. It was only his second—no, third, if you counted that business with Marionettiste—time in here and he looked around with undisguised curiosity. Marinette tucked her hands behind her back, leaning her weight from foot to foot, and waited for his opinion. The walls usually decorated by his face were glaringly bare and she hoped he wouldn't think it was suspicious.

"You like pink," he commented.

"It's my favorite color."

"Really? I would never have guessed."

She stuck her tongue out at him. "It goes good with my skin tone and it isn't annoying if you stare at it for too long."

Adrien looked her up and down once. "Not arguing there."

"So, what do you want to do?" Marinette asked. "I've got movies, video games—"

"What about cheese?" Plagg poked his head out of the pocket in Adrien's shorts. "Got any cheese?"

"Plagg," Adrien chided. "I told you not to."

"I haven't eaten in hours!" the tiny god complained and flew out into the open air. "Please," he beseeched Marinette, "I'm famished."

"'Famished'," Tikki parroted with a shake of her head and began to sink towards the floor. "You two have fun, I'll take him down to the refrigerator."

"Don't let Mama see you," Marinette warned.

"We are quite capable of hiding from mothers," Plagg informed her primly and dove after his counterpart. The kwami disappeared through the floor.

Adrien sighed. "He's going to eat every piece of cheese you own. I'm sorry. I'll buy you more."

Marinette shook her head. "Tikki won't let him. Don't worry. I'm more than happy to feed him, anyway."

"You say that _now_ ," he muttered.

"Come on." She nudged his arm. "What do you want to do?"

He thought about it for a minute, biting his lip. "Well, we never had that _Mecha Strike_ rematch."

Half an hour later, Sabine opened the trap door and found both kids deeply entrenched in a fighting game. Adrien was sitting cross legged in his chair while Marinette's chair sat discarded several feet away, its occupant having shoved it away in the heat of battle to stand as she aggressively button mashed.

Living with two gamers, Sabine was well aware of the protocol and entered the room quietly and stood behind them, watching the match progress. Neither child acknowledged her. She noticed right away that the magazine clippings that usually decorated part of the room were absent and had to bite the inside her lip to stop herself from chuckling. Marinette must have worked herself into quite the tizzy trying to hide the evidence.

She knew almost nothing about the game they were playing although she recognized it as one Marinette and Tom would often play. Her daughter, she assumed, was the Ladybug-inspired robot, which had been her favorite ever since it was released. Adrien had chosen a black one that looked like…well, a cat. That was right, the game had added robots based on both heroes. They seemed to be evenly matched if the bars on screen were anything to judge by but she could tell from the way Adrien's tongue was clamped between his teeth and her daughter's upright position that they were both working extremely hard to keep it that way.

" _OUAIS!_ WOOOO!"

The controller slipped from Marinette's tiny fingers as she threw her hands up and Sabine leaned to the side to avoid it.

" _Marinette wins!"_ the game announced.

"AWW! COME ON! THAT WAS DIRTY."

Marinette bobbed back in forth in her usual victory dance, swinging her arms around. Adrien glowered at her but the corner of his lip twitched and gave him away.

Sabine cleared her throat. "Lunch, kids."

Both heads whipped around. Adrien's eyes grew wide.

"Yes!" Marinette hissed eagerly and darted down the stairs. Adrien set his controller down and followed more subdued than her daughter had.

"Chin up," Sabine encouraged, "not even Tom can beat her most of the time."

Adrien grinned. "Oh, I know. She fights dirty and has so much luck that it's almost unfair. But that'll make eventually beating her even better."

Sabine raised her eyebrows. "You seem confident."

"You can't have good luck without bad. Sooner or later, the tables will turn themselves," he said sagely.

Sabine chuckled. "Well, when you put it that way. If you manage to beat her, I'm pretty sure Tom will want to give you a plate full of cookies or something else sweet."

Adrien's eyes went as round as saucers. He looked at their abandoned game, still displaying the victory screen, then back at Sabine. She winked and jerked her thumb in the direction of the trap door. Adrien grinned and scampered down the stairs after Marinette.

~*~

Marinette was surprised at how excited Adrien seemed to be for dinner with her family. He had almost every single meal prepared by world class chefs and probably with the finest ingredients available. In comparison, her mother's cooking wouldn't be anything special, right? It wasn't like they were having anything that would be out of the ordinary for him since she wasn't making anything Chinese tonight. Yet he still laid on his stomach in front of her open trap door and watched the happenings below through the gaps in the rails. She knew from experience that the view wouldn't offer him much.

"What's she making, Tikki?" Marinette asked.

Her kwami tilted her head to the side then dove down through the floor. She returned a moment later with the answer. "Looks like quiche!"

"Quiche," she repeated, looking at Adrien. He grinned at her.

"I haven't had quiche in a long time. My mom loved it and she'd either ask for it or help make it at least twice a month." He paused, cocking his head to the side, then lowered his voice conspiratorially, "It was actually one of the only things she _could_ make."

"I know the feeling."

"Same."

"Somehow that doesn't surprise me."

"Hey!" Adrien protested while Plagg cackled on the other side of the room.

Normally they would eat dinner after the bakery had been cleaned for the evening but since Adrien would have to go home long before then, her papa came up the moment he closed up shop and brought a platter of leftover pastries with him for desert. They didn't have space for four people at their table so they took their plates over to the couch to eat, something Adrien had never been allowed to do. He looked like he was trying to walk on eggshells as he crossed from the kitchen to the couch and gingerly lowered himself to the couch. He set his cup on the small table in front of them then sat back, holding his plate well away from his legs as he got comfortable.

Marinette plopped gracelessly next to him while Sabine and Tom took the other side of the couch.

Adrien was equally careful when he took his first bite, staring intently at the fork like he expected his food to abandon ship on the way to his mouth. Marinette had already finished her first bite by the time the fork made it to his mouth. He chewed slowly for a moment before his expression lit up. He went for another bite eagerly and brought it to his mouth with less than half of the care of the first.

"This is good!" he declared, covering his full mouth with one hand. "Really good! I like it!"

Sabine chuckled softly at his antics. "I'm glad to hear it."

"So, Sabine tells me that there was an epic battle upstairs," Tom began then lifted a bite of quiche to his mouth.

"Yeah!" Marinette crowed, lowering her fork. "There was!"

"Will I be surprised at the victor?"

"Nope!"

Adrien's lip jutted out in a pout and Tom laughed jovially. He reached over and ruffled Adrien's hair good naturedly and Marinette's eyes widened slightly. "Don't worry, son. I've been there more times than you can imagine."

Pout morphing into a wry grin, Adrien brushed the dislodged hair out of his face. "Ten times."

His hair was shorter when he was Adrien, she'd realized that when she watched him de-transform earlier and the light passing over him had done more than simply re-arrange his hair. Her papa's ruffling hadn't given him his Chat Noir hair, per say, but it messed up the blonde locks just enough that Marinette's heart soared as it occurred to her yet again that _this was her partner._ This was Adrien and Chat, together, in the same wonderful dork of a person.

Maybe it was the newness of the concept, maybe it was their smaller bodies that kept it from fully sinking in, but each time she was struck by the thought felt almost as shocking as the initial moment of realization. Perhaps seeing him when they got back to normal would be enough to solidify the concept in her mind.

"—regret the day I put a controller in her hands," Tom was lamenting when Marinette came back to herself.

Adrien shook his head. "Maybe you and I ought to play each other since we're so sorely outmatched by her."

Tom was slow to answer, expression thoughtful as he chewed. "Well, I need to go clean up downstairs after dinner, but I don't see why we can't have a match this Sunday if you'd like to come over then. I take Sundays off."

"I…think I can. I'd have to check with Nathalie, though. The fashion industry never takes days off," he added with a bit of bitterness.

But her father wasn't deterred. "Well, then, good thing you're a little boy and not a multi-billion-euro industry."

Adrien laughed.

"Best four out of five and I play winner," Marinette declared.

"Done," Tom said with a firm nod. "It is officially a tournament. You have to come now, Adrien."

He laughed again. "Okay, okay, I'll do my best!"

Sunday was three days away. Assuming they couldn't get this sorted by then, then there was no way Adrien would have to worry about photoshoots, Marinette reasoned. Not unless Gabriel Agreste suddenly decided for a mid-summer line for pre-pubescent boys.

Marinette helped Sabine do the dishes after dinner and Adrien called Nathalie to inform her that dinner was over as he'd promised. He hung up a minute later and announced that his driver would be here in ten minutes.

"So soon?" Marinette pouted.

"Yeah. My father has insisted on an early bedtime for me." Adrien grimaced. "Until I go back to normal."

"Actually, that's not a bad idea," Sabine mused. Marinette whipped her head around in horror. "Marinette—"

" _Maman!_ "

"I know I can't force you to sleep," her mother said, "but I'd like you to be in bed when we go. Electronics off. You're not in trouble but your body needs more rest right now."

Marinette stared at her mother in disbelief for a moment then levelled a murderous look at Adrien. _Traitor._ He cringed a bit but then he winked and mouthed with deliberate slowness, " _Patrouille._ "

Her murderous look faded almost immediately. Oh. She glanced at her mother who appeared to not have seen the exchange and was holding out a plate for her to dry.

She let out a loud, disgruntled sigh and took the plate. "Fine," she grumbled.

"Sorry," Adrien stage-whispered and Marinette stuck her tongue out at him.

Adrien retrieved his jacket (and his kwami) from her room and then Marinette walked him downstairs. They could hear the sink running in the bakery kitchen and after a moment of deliberation, Adrien darted down the hall to poke his head in and say goodbye to her dad. Tom bid him farewell loudly, reminding him about their tournament.

There was a skip in his step as he returned to her side.

Marinette couldn't see the car outside then figured that his driver wouldn't know about their side door so they went outside to wait in front of the bakery. _Collège_ Francois Dupont sat just across the street and Marinette could see the stairway where they'd first bonded over an umbrella and a resolved misunderstanding. How far they'd come since then…in more ways than one. They were lucky enough to be going to the same lycée next year though there was no guarantee if they'd have classes together, at least they'd be in the same building. That was something.

Adrien nudged her with his arm.

"Hmm?"

He nudged her again and this time she looked up at him. His expression was warm and a smile appeared on his face. "I had fun today. …More fun than I've had as Adrien in a while," he confessed. "Thank you."

"I had a lot of fun, too. I guess this means we have to hang out more like this."

"Definitely," he agreed just as a sleek silver car pulled up alongside the curb. Adrien sighed. "And that's me. I'll see you in a few hours?"

She nodded. "Same place as usual."

Adrien lifted his arm, curling his hand into a fist with a hopeful expression on his face. Marinette bumped her fist against his. " _Bien joué,_ " they said together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> #LETADRIENEAT2K4EVER
> 
> :D Feel free to come talk to me on my tumblr, [wintermoth](http://wintermoth.tumblr.com). I will be using the tag "[Pint Sized ML](http://wintermoth.tumblr.com/tagged/pint%20sized%20ml)" for everything related to this fic and you can, too. Be sure to put it in the first five tags, though, or I won't see it. 
> 
> TRANSLATIONS:  
>  _Maman_ \- mama/momma
> 
> _Patrouille_ \- If you couldn't figure this one out through context clues, it means "patrol"


End file.
